Piezoresistive pressure sensors operate in a wide range of temperature conditions, for example, from extremely low cryogenic temperatures to extremely hot temperatures often associated with gas turbine engines. While such sensors may operate over broad temperature ranges, the accuracy of the sensor is often disrupted as prior art sensors are much more accurate when operating within narrower temperature ranges. There are many ways to correct for these inaccuracies, however. One way is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,549,006, which is assigned to Kulite Semiconductor Products, the assignee herein.
If the sensor is maintained at a stable temperature, however, such methods described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,549,006 are not necessary to achieve high accuracy. There are a few ways to maintain a stable temperature. For example, prior art embodiments regulate and maintain the temperature of a pressure sensor by incorporating an external heater and an accompanying temperature sensor. The temperature sensor detects a change in temperature within the pressure sensor and cooperatively works with an external heater to maintain a steady pressure sensor temperature. Such external heaters may be costly and may undesirably add to the overall size of the sensing device, therefore it is desirable to regulate and maintain the temperature of a pressure sensor without the added cost and size of an external heater. It is to this need that the present invention is directed.